SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:52 P.M. ET:

OOPS – From The Hill:  Iowa Democratic Party officials have found errors in the its caucus results amid a review, according to The Des Moines Register.  State party officials confirmed to the Register on Friday that the final tally is being altered as discrepancies have been found.  Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton was declared the winner after Monday night’s caucuses, defeating rival Bernie Sanders by just 0.2 percentage points.  "Both the Sanders and Clinton campaigns have flagged a very small number of concerns for us, and we are looking at them all on a case-by-case basis," Iowa Democratic Party spokesman Sam Lau said.  Democratic educational policies have never stressed a knowledge of math, so this isn't surprising.  Plus or minus five percent would meet liberal standards.

BERNIE, WE HARDLY KNOW YE – News outlets are telling us nothing substantial about the man.  Nice, kindly old Bernie.  Man of principle.  But what are his principles?  Everything I've found out is depressing.  Bernie is an honest Marxist.  He served for a time on a kibbutz (collective farm) in Israel before that movement was essentially abandoned by the Israelis, and we now learn that it was the most left-wing kibbutz available in Israel, one that remembered Joe Stalin fondly.  Bernie was also a conscientious objector and never served in the military.  Bernie is to the left of the Democratic Party, of which he is not a member.  Honest yes.  Warm yes.  Correct no.  More to come.

LET'S SEE IF IT WORKS – From Fox:   Officials at an Oklahoma school district said they wanted to send a clear warning to protect against potential attacks, so they put up signs on Monday alerting that staff members could be carrying guns.  The signs were erected at public schools in Okay, according to the Muskogee Phoenix. The town's police department was reportedly disbanded in 2014, and even though sheriff's deputies are available, Superintendent Charles McMahan says that may not be enough.  "We don't want to be a soft target," he told the newspaper.  One sign reads, "ATTENTION: Please be aware that certain staff members at Okay Public Schools can be legally armed and may use whatever force is necessary to protect our students."  It's called "deterrence."  Those who are armed are trained and approved.  They are a first line of defense, which is the line that is missing in most schools.  I'd be curious to see how many schools adopt policies like this, and how effective those policies are.  I'll bet they're very effective. 

HILLARY'S BUSINESS – From The New York Times:   In response to a question at Thursday night’s debate, Hillary Clinton said she would “look into” the possibility of releasing transcripts of her paid remarks to banking, corporate and financial services companies like Goldman Sachs.  But by Friday morning, it did not appear that much looking was underway.  Joel Benenson, Mrs. Clinton’s pollster, gave little indication at a Wall Street Journal breakfast with reporters that the transcripts would be forthcoming.  “I don’t think voters are interested in the transcripts of her speeches,” he said.  Whether they are made public is up to the Clinton campaign. Speaking contracts typically give the speaker the right to decide whether any material from a particular speech can be shared beyond the room. Goldman Sachs, for one, declined to make an on-the-record statement.  We'll soon see how demanding the media is on this.  I can't imagine Hillary wanting these speeches made public, as they were undoubtedly friendly to Wall Street, playing right into Bernie's hands.

February 5, 2016